Removable cover for boxes or cans.



No. 885,682; PATENTED APR. 21, 1908.

I J.-1ZIMMERMAN. V

REMOVABLE COVER FOR BOXES OR-GA APPLICATION nub 14m. 2a, 1907.

Jnrerziw 71 dim gmr1wy i 1 I. TED str rEs PATENT orFIcE.

JOHN znnunammor cnIoAco, ILLINOIS, ASSIGNOR or ONE-HALF T HARRY IRWIN- I CROMEB, or CHICAGO, ILLINOIS;

n nmovannn oovna non Boxes .03 CANS.

s ecification '01 Letters Patent. Yatente'd Apri1'21, 1908.

.a pn ri meirsnm as,1907. Serial no. 354,422.

I Sl'o [all whom it may cancer mi Be it known that-I, JOHN ZIMMERMAiI, a citizen of the United States, residing in Chim'the county of Cook and State of Illi- 5 nois, have invented certain new and useful in Removable Covers for Boxes or Cans, of which the following is a cago,

Improvements specification.

This invention relates to that class of removable; covers having a depending rim or flange adapted to encircle and tightly close and provided with means for-enabling thecover to be loos-- ened or detached by'expanding the lower pora circular box or can body,

1 tion of the flange or rim.

The principal object of the. invention is to economical and efficient provide a simple, removable cover for boxes orcans.

' A further object of the inven'ti n is to provide a removable cover having a circular or cylindrical dependingfiange or rimportion e and render air tight a circular box or can body, and to pro- .vide such cover with suitable referably inower portion. of the flange to be expanded for the-purpose of loosening the cover and enabling it to be adapted to entirely encirc tegral means for enabling the readily removed in an efiicient manner.

- 'A further object is toprovide a removable cover having a circular or cylindrical flange ortion ada ted to tightly close a circular referably integral with the cover,forenab ing the cover to be detached or loosened by expanding thelower ortion of the cover flange or rim, and in suc a manner that the bead upon the box or can body is not required to perform any ox or can ody, with means function in the operation of removing or loosening the cover and therefore mayfbe 40 made as small as desired, or dispensed with e efficiency in operation of the means for detachingor when desired, without aflecting t L loosening the cover.

A further object is to provlde a cover of the class described with means for enabling it to be loosened or deta'hed in an efficient 'manner without the use of" a plier, lever or ing similar tool, and in such a manner as to disturb the contents ofthe receptacle as littleas possible and leave the bottom of the flange or rim somewhat expanded afterthe first re-- moval so that the cover may be readily replaced and removed re eatedly.

Other and further ob ects of the invention will'appear'from an exaimnation of thedraw-' ingsand the following description and claims.

j The invention consists in the features, combinations and details of construction hereinafter described" and claimed. a 0

In the accompanyingdrawings Figure 1 is. a plan view of a boxor can provided with a cover constructed in accordance with my improvements; Fig. 2, a view of the cover in side elevation; Fig. 3 a side elevation of the 5 box and covershown in Fig. 1; Fig. 4, a central sectional elevation taken on line 4 of Fig. 1, looking in the direction of the arrow; 5, a sectional plan view taken on line '5, of ig. 3, looking in thedirection of the ar- 7 row; and Fig. 6, a b ttom plan view of the cover showing the ange 'or rimin normal osition in ful lines, and showing the flaring or downwardly and outwardly inclined portions orlips depressed and the lower portion of the flangev expanded, in dotted lines.

Inconstructing a box or can provided with aremo'vable cover made in accordance with my improvements rovide a box 'or can body a formed pre era 1y of sheet metal and 30 which may be of any ordinary and well known form. The box here shown is of the form commonl used for containing shoe polish, stove po ish, paste or similar material, and which, in order to properly protect the contents, is generally required to beair-tight.

e box or can body is provided with a bead b for limiting the downward movement. of the 7 cover and increasing the tightness of the fit. For this purppse it is desirable that the u'pper side of the' ead should be tapered inward gradually so as not to form an abrupt angle I or shoulder. It therefore, becomes very desirable to provide a cover with means for en- 'abling it to be readily loosened and removedindependently of the be'adpr in the absence of a bead, and without requiring the presence or cooperation of a shoulder of any sort upon the box or can body. A cover 0, formed preferably of sheet metal; is therefore rovided, having an integral dependange or rim which is circular and preferably eylindricalat all points ofnormal engagementwith the box or can body. -In

from a point above" the upper edgeof the can or'box body to a point below suchupper edge of the box or .can is circular and preferablycylindrical. Thiscircular portion of'the'fl'ange is thus adapted to" entirely en- 110 other words, the upper portion-of the flange circle and tightly close a circular box or can body. This depending flan e or rim portion of the cover is also provided-'ivith preferably a plurality 'of integral downwardly and outwardly inclined flaring portions or lips e which extend outward laterally beyond the circular or cylindrical portions of the flange and preferably on opposite sides of the cover so as to form inner concave faces f which extend outward laterally beyond the circular flange portions and the lower and most widely flaring portions of which lips are integrally connectedwith the lower edge of the flange where it is in binding engagement with the cylindrical walls of the box-body. A space is thus formedbetween the inner concave 'Surface portions of these flaring portions or lips and the adjacent outer surface of the boxbody. This construction of the downwardly flaring portions or lips enables them to be bent inward from normal. position toward the box body thegeby spreading the lower portions of the lips and expaiigling the lower portion of the flange so as to osen or detach the cover. Substantially the en the depending flange (1 above tions or ii s' e is cylindrical. The lower portions of flhe flange which are between the flaring portions or lips are also cylindrical and in binding engagement with the box-body on opposite sides of the box and cover; and on opposite sides of or between the flaring portions or h s, when in normal position. It .will thus e seen that while the cover is adapted to body, the depression or inward bending of the outwardly and downwardly extending inclined portions or flaring lips will cause the lower portion of the flange d to ex and, as indicated in dotted lines in Fig. 6. This may be readily accomplished by pressing inward upon or tapping one or both of the flaring or lip portions. By continuing the pressure .or tappingthe latter being more eflective until the flaring portion of the flange is somewhat flattened, the normally cylindrical portions of the flange between the flaring portions. or lips, or on opposite sides of such lips, will,be expanded sufliciently without injury to the contents of the receptacle and without the use of a plier, lever or other similar element. In effect-the diameter of the lower portion of the flange is increased so that the cover may be readily and repeatedly removed and replaced. I

I prefer to have the lower ing portions or li .ire portion of the flaring poredges of the flars extend outward in the form of the are 0 a circle ,and flush with or below the level of the bottom edge of the flange of which they form a partin other words, flush with or below the up er edge of the head. The flaring portions or l i s should also be, referably, on opposite si( es of the covers y restin one against a support and tapping the ot ier they thus cooperate in tightly close a circular box or can expandin the flange and loosening or de t'aching' t 1e coverthe effect being thus practically doubled by the expenditure of the same degree of effort. The bottom portion and edge of the flange, when constructed as above described is elliatical, and in binding engagement with th walls of the box-body at the shorter diameter of the elliptical portion ofthe flange, said flange extending outward laterally from the bOX-bOdY on opposite sides of the box and cover at the ionger diameter of the elliptical portion. It is not always necessary to bend the flaring portions of the flange inward to such an extent that they will not spring back to normal or initial position. The Gll1)tl(lftl form of the lower portion of the cover-i ange enables it to clam or'bind the walls of the box-body where tie cylindrical portions of the flange between the laterally projecting e cylindrical portionsor lips engage the box, 111 such a manner that the inward bending or flexing of i the laterally projecting portions will loosen the cover and the flexibility due to the material used and the elliptical form of the lower portion of the flange will permit it, to spring ack to normal position. VYhen the cover is made of sufli'ciently light sheet metal it is sometimes unnecessary to even employ an instrument of any kind, the pressure of the fingers being suflicient to spread or loosen the flange.

I claim: 1. A box-body, and a cover having a depending flange the upper ortion of which is in engagement with the lower portion of which is engaging segmental circu ar portions in se curing engagement with the box-body and with a laterally projecting flexible portion extending outward between such lower boxengaging portions of the flange and adapted to be bent inward and thereby spread the lower portion of the flange to loosen the cover, the portion of the box which is encircled by the cover flange being smooth and free from projection.

2. A box-body having annular side walls provided with an upper outer surface portion which is smooth and free from lateral projection, and a cover having a depending flange the 11 per portion of which encircles the smooti upper portion of the box-body and the lower portionof which is provided with box-engaging portions in securing engage ment with the box-body and with laterally projecting flexible portions on opposite sides of the cover, between box-engaging portions of the flange, adapted to be bent'inward and thereby spread the box-engaging lower portions of the flange, to loosen the cover. PM

3. A box-body having circular walls and having a bead near the top of the body and a marginal portion between the said bead and the upper edge of the body which is ox-body and the rovided with box smooth and free from projections and a cover having a dependin flange the upper portion of which is circu ar and in engagement with the box-body and the lower portion of which is provided with box-engaging segmental circular portions on o 1posite sides of the box-body, and downwar y and outwardly inclined laterally projecting flexible portions on opposite sides'of the cover,be-

.tween box-engaging portions of the flange,

adapted to be bent inward and thereby s read the box-engaging lower portions of t e flange, to loosen the cover.

4;" A box-body, and a metallic cover having a dependin inclosin flange the upper portion of which is circu ar and in engagement with the box-body andvthe lower porrtion of which is elli tical and in binding engagement with the ox-body at the shorter diameter of the elliptical portion of the flange, the elli tical portion oi the flange, at 1ts. longer iameter, extending laterally beyond and out of engagement with the box-body on of}; osite sides of the cover and forming flexi e flaring portions between box-engaging flange portions and adapted to be bent inward ant. the eby spread the lower boxengaging portion of the flange to loosen the cover.

J OHN ZIMMERMAN.

Witnesses:

CHAS. S. B RTON,

DONALD M. CARTER. 

